Coal-conveyer.



Patented Ian. 30, I900. R. D. SEYMOUR &. H. N. ELMER.

COAL CONVEYER.

(Application filed Apr. 15, 1899.)

3 Shoets-Sheet I.

(No Model.)

No. 642,373. Patented Ian. 30, 1900.

B. D. SEYMOUR 8|. H. N. ELMER. COAL CONVEYER.

(Application filed Apr.' 15, 1899.)

(No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet 2.

15 fl egmo TH: Nonms PEYERS co, wummuwou wnsumomu. a. Q

No. 642,373. Patented lanlao, I900. n. n. SEYMOUR & H. N. ELMER.

COAL CUNVEYER.

(Application filed Apr, 15, 1399.) (No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet 3.

ZQf/ZJJdJ, 1720622300,

THE Norms PEYEHs c0 wnorourwon WASHINGTON 0. c4

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

RUGELEY D. SEYMOUR AND HOWARD N. ELMER, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

COAL-CONVEYER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 642,373, dated January 30, 1900.

Serial No. 7155195- (NO model-l canal, or railway-track, and has particular relation to that class of conveyers adapted to be used on plantations, all of which will more fully hereinafter appear.

The object of the invention is to provide a simple, economical, and efficient conveyor; and the invention consists in the features, combinations, and details of construction hereinafter described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a side elevation of a conveyer constructed and arranged in accordance with our improvements; Fig. 2', a plan view of the same; Figs. 3 and 4, sectional details of the saddle or upper part of a tower which supports a portion of the mechanism; Fig. 5, a broken detail elevation of the conveyor-mast; Fig. 6, an enlarged sectional plan view of the same, taken on line 6 of Fig. 5; Fig. 7, a side elevation of a barge with the unloading and winding mechanisms in position; Fig. 8, a plan view of the same; Fig. 9, a sectional elevation taken on lines 9 of Figs. 8 and 10; and Fig. 1.0, a sectional plan View, taken on line 10 of Fig. 9 looking at it from above.

In the art to which this invention relates it is Well known that in the South the plantations,particularly sugar plantations, use large quantities of coal during the season in which their grinding operations are performed. At this time the ground is usually in a dreadful condition-that is, it is very soft from the moisture which has fallen until it is nothing more than a vast sea of mud, so that the question of hauling coal from a river-bank to the yard orplace of storage is an important one in'that it generally means an immense outlay of labor and expense. To overcome these objectionable features and provide a coal-conveyer which can be operated in any way and at any time simply and economically is the principal object of our invention.

In illustrating and describing our improve ments we have shown them as constructed and arranged in combination with and as forn1- ing a part of a barge or similar vessel and arranged adjacent to a river-bank. It will be understood, however, that modifications can be made, so that the invention is applicable to different kinds of vessels or vehicles and can be arranged in various positions without in any way departing from the spirit of the invention.

In constructing our improvements we make two tracks A and A of wire, cable, or similar elements and arrange themso that one end of each, as at a, may be anchored in the ground and passed overa suitable saddle b on a supporting-mast B, thence over a saddle c on a tower O, and have its free end secured, as will be more fully hereinafter described, to proper mechanism on the barge or vessel D.

WVhen the cable is not in use, it is desirable that some means be provided for storing and transporting it, and when it is in use it is desirable and, in fact, absolutely necessary that some mechanism be provided by which the ends opposite the anchor may be tightened or drawn taut to such an extent as to take up as far as possible the slack in the track. To provide mechanism for accomplishing these results, We use two storage windingdrums E and E, which are rotatably mounted in suitable bearings in the vessel and which have one end of the track-cables passed around thesame. Eachofthesewinding-drumsisprovided with a fluid-pressure engine F and F to operate the same and wind up the cable when it is not in use, so that it may be economically stored and transported, and also to provide for different circumstances and confor three hundred feet or any point interme diate the same. It will therefore be seen that winding-drums are an absolute essential to enable a desired amount of cable to be paid out or taken up to suit varying circumstances or conditions.

In order to take up the slack in the track and make it as taut as possible, we provide a clamp g or other suitable means and secure it to a portion of the cable-track at or near the winding-drums, as shown particularly in Figs. 9 and 10. To this is secured in anysuitable manner a pulley-block G, which has a cable, cord, or similar element 9 secured to a second pulley-block G, and which is passed through the first pulley-block, thence back through the second, and thence through a third pulley-block G to a winch H. By rotating the winch it will be seen that the track may be made as taut as it is possible to make it. There are two of these tightening devices, one for each track.

To convey the coal from a point adjacent to the barge or similar vessel, a conveyer I is provided, made in the shape of a dumpingbucket and which is supported by means of bails t' on a trolley-car I, mounted upon one of the tracks. There are two of these conveyers, one for each track, so that when one conveyor is coming back to the boat the other conveyer is going forward toward the mast, where the coal may be dnmpedat the desired point. It is therefore desirable to provide means by which one of the conveying-buckets is moved forward toward the pile while the other is being drawn in toward the boat. In order to provide means of this kind, we providea second set of two winding-drums K and K, mounted upon a single winding-shaft 7t and operated by a single engine K The pitch or grooves in these winding-drums are oppositely arranged or the carrying-cables may be wound around the drums in opposite directions, so that while one drum is performing a winding operation the other is performing an unwinding operation. A single hauling-line L is provided, having one free end secured to one winding-drum and the other to the other winding-drum and thence passed over the tower and around the pulley L, as

shown particularly in Figs. 5 and 6. The trolley-wheels of the carrier are arranged so as to operate upon the cable-track, and the hauling-line is secured to the carrier at any desired point, and particularly as shown in Fig. 10, by means of a clamp 2''. By this construction and arrangement it will be seen that a single engine hauls one of the conveyingbuckets out to the pile while the other conveying-bucket is being hauled toward the boat.

In dumping bituminous coal it is well known that when dumped from any considerable height it isapt to be blown around and that the force of the pieces as they strike each other in the dumping disintegrates the coal and impairsitsefficiency. Itis,therefore,extremely desirable that some provision be made for raising and lowering the end of the track on the mast, so that something like uniformity in the height of the bucket above the pile may 'mounted upon the mast.

be obtained. To accomplish this result, the track, as hereinabove stated, is passed over a saddle b, which is vertically and movably To raise and lower this clip, with the track and hauling-line, we prefer to provide blocks and tackle composed of pulleys M and M and the cord or cable m, one end of which is secured to the saddle at m and the other to a crab or winch m By winding up the cable m the saddle is raised and by unwinding it the saddle is permitted to descend, thus raising and lowering the track at or near the mast and as a consequence the conveying bucket which may be thereon. While we have shown these pul- Rays and cable for raising and lowering the saddle, it will be understood that they may be dispensed with and other mechanisms used for accomplishing the same result and which will practically be the full equivalent thereof.

To loadthebuckets in an economical manner, the vessel is provided with a hoppenpocket P, having a discharge-chntep arranged in such position, as shown in Fig. 9, that the conveying-bucket may be brought thereunder. A crane formed of a mast Q and boom q, which carries a grab-bucket Q, are provided for raising the coal out of an adjacent boat R, swinging it around, and dumping it into the hopper-box, from which it is discharged through the discharge-chute into the conveyer.

Spuds S are provided to anchor the barge at the desired position and prevent it from tipping during the operation of conveying the coal, and the spars T are provided, which are arranged to abut against the bank X of the river and be secured between posts on the boat or barge, so as to hold the same at the desired distance from the bank.

While we have described our invention with more or less minuteness as regards details of construction and arrangement and as being embodied in certain precise forms, we do not desire to be limited thereto unduly or any more than is pointed out in the claims. On the contrary, we contemplate all proper changes in form, construction, and arrangement, the omission of immaterial elements, and the substitution of equivalents as circumstances may suggest or necessity render expedient.

We claim 1. In mechanisms of the class described, the combination of two cables arranged to be laid parallel with each other and detaehably anchored at or near their outermost position, two winding drums arranged to wind up, pay out and support the cable-tracks at one end, auxiliary mechanism between the drums and cables arranged and operating to take up the slack of the cable-tracks, a shippable mast arranged to support the outer end of the cable-track in a raised position, a trolley-car for each track provided with a conveyingbucket, a hauling-line secured to each trolleycar and passed around the mast, and a second set of winding and unwinding drums around which the ends of the hauling-line are passed for advancing one car and receding the other, substantially as described.

2. In mechanisms of the class described, the combination of two cable-tracks arranged to be laid parallel with each other and anchored at or near their outermost position, two Winding-drums arranged to wind up, pay out and support the cable-tracks at one end, a supporting-mast, a sliding saddle on said mast to adjustably hold the cable-tracks and ahauling-line, means by which said saddle is raised or lowered, means for taking up the slack in the cable-tracks, a trolley-car and bucket on each track, a hauling-line secured to each trolley-car and passed through the saddle mechanism, and a second set of winding and unwinding drums to which the ends of the hauling-line are secured to move the trolleys back and forth, substantially as described.

3. In mechanisms of the class described, the combination of a cable-track detachably anchored at the free end thereof, a windingdrum for the attachment and support of the opposite ends of the cable-track and operating to pay out and pull in the track, a portable transporting means carrying and supporting the winding-drum and operating mechanism, a shippable-mast, a saddle movable up and down on the mast and over which the cabletrack is carried and supported, a trolley-car traveling on the cable track, a conveyingbucket carried by the car, a winding and an unwinding drum, and a hauling cable or cord fastened to the winding and unwinding drums and the trolley-car, substantially as described.

4. In mechanisms of the class described, the combination of a cable-track detachably anchored at the free end thereof, a winding-- drum for the attachment and support of the the winding-drum and operating mechanism,

a shippable mast, a saddle movable up and down on the mast and over which the cabletrack is carried and supported, a tower between the transporting means and the mast, a saddle on the tower over which the cabletrack passes and is supported, a trolley-car traveling on the cable track, a conveyingbucket carried by the car, a winding and an unwinding drum, and a hauling cable or cord fastened to the winding and unwinding drums and trolley-car, substantially as described.

5. In mechanisms of the class described, the combination of a cable-track detachably anchored at the free end thereof, a windingdrum for the attachment and support of the opposite end of the cable-track and operating to pay out and pull in such track, a portable transporting means carrying and supporting the winding drum and operating mechanism, a shippable mast on which the cable-track is held and supported in a raised position at the free end, a tower arranged to support the cable-track intermediate of the mast and the transporting means, a clamp at tached to the cable-track, a tightening cable or cord secured to the clamp, and a system of pulleys over which the tightening cable or cord passes for the draw of the cord to maintain the track taut, substantially as described.

RUGELEY D. SEYMOUR. HOWARD N. ELMER.

Witnesses:

THOMAS F. SHERIDAN, THOMAS E. MCGREGOR. 

